Stockholm - Troubled Swedish carmaker Saab will likely have to wait until October for a decision on a loan application from the European Investment Bank (EIB), reports said Tuesday. Saab - owned by US giant General Motors - has said it hopes to get a loan worth 600 million dollars from the EIB as part of its efforts to develop new fuel-efficient cars.
GM earlier this year said it planned to cut ties with Saab.
Last week GM said it had inked a deal to sell its shares in its loss-making Swedish subsidiary to the Koenigsegg Group - a consortium structured around a low-volume Swedish sportscar maker.
EIB vice president Eva Srejber said the EIB management would not have time to assess Saab's application until October, saying that supplementary information about Saab's business plan had not arrived in time for the EIB to analyze it by the board meeting scheduled for September 22, financial site E24 reported.
The EIB loan hinges on a Swedish state loan guarantee. The Swedish government has said that before its gives its approval, the consortium needs to raise more private capital.
Saab in February filed for bankruptcy protection, which ended last week.
GM's interest in Saab - one of Europe's smallest carmakers - dates back to the early 1990s. The company took full control in 2000.
